Udall Advocates Presidential Recess Appointment for CFPB Director

After Senate Republicans today blocked the confirmation of Richard Cordray to head the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Mark Udall called on President Obama to confirm Cordray via a “recess appointment” during Congress’s holiday break. Given Republicans’ vocal refusal to consider any nominee to lead the consumer watchdog agency without changes to its previously debated and approved structure, Udall believes a recess appointment is the only way to give the agency the authority to protect consumers from unfair business practices.

“I’m disappointed that partisan politics are standing in the way of protecting American consumers from the abusive Wall Street practices that hurt our country and our economy. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau needs a confirmed director to give the agency the teeth it needs to fight back on behalf of consumers,” Udall said. “Although I would rather have the director position confirmed through regular order, my colleagues have shown they are intent on hamstringing the CFPB no matter who the nominee is. Consumers suffer every day when we leave them open to predatory financial practices such as misleading credit score ads. I urge the President to appoint Richard Cordray to lead the CFPB and empower it to take on its full watchdog duties.”

Udall authored a provision that was passed into law last year[1] requiring that consumers be provided a free copy of their credit scores if they apply for credit and are turned down or receive less-than-favorable terms. That new law would be overseen by the CFPB and is among the reasons Udall is fighting to ensure the agency can carry out its duties. Earlier this week, Udall spoke on the Senate floor urging his colleagues to confirm Cordray[2] and give the CFPB the authority it needs to carry out its watchdog functions. He said the agency “may be one of the most important federal agencies we have.”